Vermont Quilt Festival 2012

This past weekend I traveled to Essex Junction, Vermont to attend the 2012 Vermont Quilt Festival. My daughter and I had a great time.

Upon arriving we meet up with my Mother-in-law who said, 

"Do you want to see your quilt?" 

"Yes, yes!" So off we went to the miniature quilt section. At first I couldn't see the tag with a bright blue ribbon, just my quilt. Then I saw it!  What a thrill! 

I believe I stood there and repeated over and over again, "It's blue! It's really blue!"

"Little Hospitality" (featured with great details in my October 2011 post) earned 95 out of a possible 100 points in the areas of Visual Impact, Design and Workmanship at this show.

There were a total of 16 miniature quilts in the competition this year. Of the group there was one purple ribbon for Exceptional Merit (a quilt earning 98 points or above), 6 First Place blue ribbons (earning 94-97 points), 2 Second Place red ribbons (earning 90-93 points) and 3 Third Place yellow ribbons (earning 85-89 points).

What awesome company to keep!

This is "Duffer" by Patty Williams of Plessis, NY.

He earned an Exceptional Merit ribbon and the Best Miniature Quilt award.

In the Vermont Quilt Festival, miniature quilts are defined as those which "reflect miniaturization and have a perimeter equal to or less than 113 inches."

The quilt above is called "Pachisi Galaxy" by Gail B. Frenz of Brant Lake, NY. She comments that it is an original design and once on paper reminded her of the childhood game Parcheesi. She originally drew it to be a 40 inch square, but enjoyed the challenge of making it miniature.

This earned a Second Place ribbon.

 

This is the "Lost Luggage Blues." Janet Jaffe of Westford, VT commented, "This is what happens when you and your sewing machine arrive at a quilting retreat but your clothing and fabric don't!"

HA!  It earned a Third Place ribbon.

"No Slices! Fuggedaboutit!" was a Empire Quilters Guild Challenge: Landmarks of New York by Betsy Vinegrad of Short Hills, NJ. She writes, "No visit to New York is complete without a visit to a "landmark" pizzeria." This stunning piece has over 800 pieces in it. WOW!

"Mirror of Galadriel" by Tess Ellwood of Proctorville, VT is a stunning First Prize winning foundation-pieced mandala. Amazing!!

The miniatures on display were just lovely. Here are two photos of the layout.

"From the Garden of the Giants" by Anne Standish of Cambridge, VT comes this stunningly rich piece. Anne writes, "The dark brown vintage Marimekko backing inspired a deep tropical jungle image; it is an original design utilizing silks, bead, and foil."

Stunning and well deserving of that First Prize ribbon.

So sorry that I couldn't photograph and feature every quilt.

There will be more to come as inspiration from the 2012 Vermont Quilt Festival.

Can you tell This Quilting Mama is excited?!